The Witcher 3 Day-1 Patch on PC Improves Vegetation and Shadows

The PC version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is also getting a day-1 patch which offers improvements on the vegetation and shadows.

PCGamesHardware, being in possession of the review build of the game, which comes with the day-1 patch is reporting several graphical improvements in the game, including better vegetation, better ambient occlusion, better textures, as well as a water tessellation effect.

Below is a screenshot comparison of the preview and review builds:

The improvements come at the cost of some performance, but as PCGamesHardware the drop is not very significant.

While many have argued that the game has lost some of its visual flair since the 2013 reveal trailer, CD Projekt RED claims that they have not changed the textures, and that they have only toned down as sharpening filter that was causing eye strain. The higher resolution can replicate the sharpening effect to some extend so it does indeed seem quite similar. Certain changes had been made of course to accommodate the console hardware, but the game turned out looking quite good indeed. We have also provided some amazing 4K Ultra settings footage of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which can be viewed here.

CD Projekt RED removed the “PS4 vs PC” comparison video, posted earlier by PCGamesHardware and went on to detail the differences between the two versions. They claimed that the PC build was not final and that the PS4 version dis not use the day-one patch which not only fixed the PS4 framerate issue but also implemented a few visual enhancements.

PlayStation Access has provided an in-depth look into many aspects of the game in a 46 minutes video which can be viewed here. It covers everything that fans have been asking for and provides answers to most questions without spoiling the experience.

A few gorgeous screenshots from the PS4 version have also been made available, and they reveal some quite beautiful vistas and the amazing lighting system.

The Witcher 3 will release on May 19 2015 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. We will bring you any new information on The Witcher 3 as soon as it becomes available. Be sure to check out our previous coverage for more information on The Witcher 3, here and here